Maine
Maine's northern location and rural character create a simple equation: storms hit hard, power goes out, and help takes longer to arrive than anywhere in southern New England. The 1998 ice storm left parts of the state without electricity for three weeks. Self-sufficiency is not optional here.
Enter your Maine ZIP for live alerts, forecasts, and county-specific data.
Know your region
Bangor, Presque Isle, Aroostook County, the western mountains. The coldest region in the eastern United States outside Alaska. Temperatures below minus 20 degrees F are routine. The 1998 ice storm devastated this region. Rural roads can be impassable for days.
Primary hazards: ice storms, extreme cold, heavy snow, flooding
Bar Harbor, Acadia, Ellsworth, Rockland, Camden. Coastal nor'easters bring storm surge and erosion. The 1947 fires burned 200,000 acres including much of Mount Desert Island. Fog, heavy seas, and coastal flooding are persistent maritime hazards.
Primary hazards: nor'easters, coastal flooding, wildfire, winter storms
Portland, Lewiston, Augusta, Brunswick. The most populated region faces nor'easters, river flooding along the Kennebec and Androscoggin, and the occasional tropical remnant. Power outages from ice storms affect dense neighborhoods where old trees overhang power lines.
Primary hazards: nor'easters, flooding, ice storms, severe storms
Your hazard profile
Each links to a full guide with during-event protocol, recovery steps, and resources specific to ME.
The 1998 ice storm left large parts of Maine without power for three weeks. Nor'easters bring blizzard conditions, coastal flooding, and dangerous wind chill. Northern Maine receives the heaviest snowfall in the Northeast.
Read the nor'easters and ice storms guide →
Coastal flooding from nor'easters and storm surge threatens shoreline communities. Spring snowmelt causes river flooding along the Penobscot, Kennebec, and Androscoggin. Flash flooding in steep terrain develops rapidly.
Read the flooding guide →
Summer thunderstorms bring damaging winds, hail, and occasional tornadoes. Maine's dense forest means one fallen tree can knock out power to an entire road. Lightning starts fires in dry conditions.
Read the severe thunderstorms guide →
The 1947 fires burned 200,000 acres including much of Acadia National Park. Modern fire risk is lower but spring conditions before green-up remain dangerous. Dry, windy April and May days create fire weather.
Read the wildfires guide →
Direct hurricane hits are rare, but tropical remnants bring flooding rain and wind. Climate trends suggest increasing tropical impacts at northern latitudes. Lee (2023) brought tropical storm conditions to Downeast Maine.
Read the tropical storms guide →
Maine resources
Maine Emergency Management Agency. Coordinates disaster response and runs the state's public alert and warning system.
Southern and central Maine forecasts. Winter storm warnings, coastal flood advisories, and severe weather alerts for the most populated region of the state.
Real-time outage tracking for the state's largest utility. During ice storms and nor'easters, this is where restoration timelines are posted.
Statewide information and referral. Energy assistance (LIHEAP), food banks, heating fuel assistance, and disaster recovery resources.
January 1998
In January 1998, a catastrophic ice storm struck Maine. Freezing rain fell for days. The weight of ice snapped utility poles like toothpicks and collapsed transmission towers. Over 700,000 people across northern New England lost power. In Maine, some communities waited three weeks for restoration. In January.
Three weeks without power in a Maine January means no heat, no light, no water pumps, no communication. The people who survived comfortably were the people with wood stoves, a supply of firewood, stored water, and a pantry stocked for winter. The people who suffered were those who depended entirely on the grid.
For every Maine household, the ice storm question is basic: can you keep one room warm and your family fed for two weeks without electricity? If you heat with oil or propane, does the system require electricity to run? If you have a well, do you have stored water for when the pump stops? These are not hypothetical questions in Maine. They are the lesson of 1998.